Arkansas
Arkansas lawmakers to tackle spending this week
Arkansas lawmakers are entering another week of the state’s fiscal session, where key decisions about how taxpayer money is spent are being made largely in budget committee meetings rather than on the House or Senate floor.During the fiscal session, lawmakers focus primarily on approving the state’s budget — deciding how money is distributed to agencies and programs that fund core services.This week, legislators are expected to work through hundreds of millions of dollars in spending, with a focus on education, health care and other essential services.Much of that work happens in the Joint Budget Committee, where lawmakers review agency requests and build the state’s spending plan before sending bills to the full House and Senate for final approval.On Tuesday, lawmakers are set to review whether the state should pay out claims and lawsuit settlements, including cases involving the Department of Corrections. They will also consider funding for several constitutional offices, including the Supreme Court, secretary of state and auditor. By Wednesday, the focus shifts to major state agencies such as the departments of health, human services and education, which fund programs like Medicaid, public health services and schools. Lawmakers will also review how federal funding is being used, including money from programs created during and after the pandemic and infrastructure investments. That includes more than $1 billion the state expects to receive over several years to support health care, particularly in rural areas.Rep. Lee Johnson, R-Greenwood and vice chair of the Joint Budget Committee, said the funding presents a significant opportunity for the state.“’One big, beautiful bill’ is bringing over $1 billion into our state over the next five years through rural health transformation funding,” Johnson said. “That’s a tremendous opportunity for us to improve health care in Arkansas.”The discussions come as Arkansas is projecting a budget surplus, shifting the debate from whether to cut spending to how to allocate additional funds.Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, said lawmakers are focused on how to use that surplus while continuing efforts to attract businesses to the state.“We have money. We’re expecting a $400 million surplus this year,” Hester said. “We’re going to get the fight over what we’re going to do with the money, not what we’re going to do in an absence of money.”However, some lawmakers have raised concerns about long-term spending commitments tied to new programs.Rep. Nicole Clowney, D-Fayetteville, said decisions made during the fiscal session could have lasting financial impacts.“Once you’ve given somebody something from the government, it is very hard to take that thing away,” Clowney said. “This is going to be a long-term commitment that our state is going to be dealing with for a very long time.”Lawmakers are expected to continue working through budget items over the next several days before sending more spending bills to the full House and Senate for consideration.
Arkansas lawmakers are entering another week of the state’s fiscal session, where key decisions about how taxpayer money is spent are being made largely in budget committee meetings rather than on the House or Senate floor.
During the fiscal session, lawmakers focus primarily on approving the state’s budget — deciding how money is distributed to agencies and programs that fund core services.
This week, legislators are expected to work through hundreds of millions of dollars in spending, with a focus on education, health care and other essential services.
Much of that work happens in the Joint Budget Committee, where lawmakers review agency requests and build the state’s spending plan before sending bills to the full House and Senate for final approval.
On Tuesday, lawmakers are set to review whether the state should pay out claims and lawsuit settlements, including cases involving the Department of Corrections. They will also consider funding for several constitutional offices, including the Supreme Court, secretary of state and auditor.
By Wednesday, the focus shifts to major state agencies such as the departments of health, human services and education, which fund programs like Medicaid, public health services and schools.
Lawmakers will also review how federal funding is being used, including money from programs created during and after the pandemic and infrastructure investments. That includes more than $1 billion the state expects to receive over several years to support health care, particularly in rural areas.
Rep. Lee Johnson, R-Greenwood and vice chair of the Joint Budget Committee, said the funding presents a significant opportunity for the state.
“’One big, beautiful bill’ is bringing over $1 billion into our state over the next five years through rural health transformation funding,” Johnson said. “That’s a tremendous opportunity for us to improve health care in Arkansas.”
The discussions come as Arkansas is projecting a budget surplus, shifting the debate from whether to cut spending to how to allocate additional funds.
Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, said lawmakers are focused on how to use that surplus while continuing efforts to attract businesses to the state.
“We have money. We’re expecting a $400 million surplus this year,” Hester said. “We’re going to get the fight over what we’re going to do with the money, not what we’re going to do in an absence of money.”
However, some lawmakers have raised concerns about long-term spending commitments tied to new programs.
Rep. Nicole Clowney, D-Fayetteville, said decisions made during the fiscal session could have lasting financial impacts.
“Once you’ve given somebody something from the government, it is very hard to take that thing away,” Clowney said. “This is going to be a long-term commitment that our state is going to be dealing with for a very long time.”
Lawmakers are expected to continue working through budget items over the next several days before sending more spending bills to the full House and Senate for consideration.
LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — The State Board of Election Commissioners is planning to petition the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a case regarding its rule prohibiting electronic signatures on Arkansas voter registrations.
When the State Board of Election Commissioners banned electronic signatures on voter registrations in 2024, Get Loud Arkansas, a nonprofit that had been using an online platform to register voters, was quick to sue.
Get Loud said it had initially received the green light from state officials to register voters with e-signatures before the rule change. The group believes the state’s shifting stance to be politically motivated.
“After saying multiple times that this was okay? Why did they change their mind? I can speculate, but that’s a question best answered by them,” Kathy Webb, executive director of Get Loud Arkansas and a Little Rock City Board member, said.
But the SBEC says it implemented its ban on e-signatures because of fraud concerns as well as equality, as most Arkansas counties did not accept e-signatures on voter registrations. The board says the rule change addressed that ambiguity.
“Some county clerks were accepting them, some county clerks were not accepting them. So, you had differences in how registrants were treated depending on which county you were in. So the board took the position to adopt a rule to require the wet signature on a piece of paper,” Chris Madison, director of the State Board of Election Commissioners, told KATV.
But the legal battle has not gone the state’s way. Courts have sided with Get Loud and allowed it to use its online voter registration tool. In May, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals refused the state’s request to hear the case. As a result, the board was left with three options: accept defeat, go to trial in district court, or try to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“We’ve had similar cases in two other circuits, in the Fifth Circuit and the 11th Circuit, where those circuits found that the signature requirement was material, meaning it serves a legitimate purpose. The trial court and the 8th Circuit’s two-to-one decision said that the rule that was adopted by the State Board is not material. So, there’s a circuit split. And those are the types of cases that the Supreme Court takes up,” Madison said.
So far, the board has spent $90,000 fighting the lawsuit out of $250,000 allocated by the Legislature. If the Supreme Court takes up the case, more money will likely need to be allocated.
“It’s the Super Bowl. It’s the Supreme Court. I mean, you get the good lawyers that do those types of cases and, you know, there’s a potential for more costs,” Madison said.
“I don’t understand why we want to spend more taxpayer dollars to fight making it easier to help people register to vote,” Webb told KATV.
The deadline for the State Board of Election Commissioners to file its petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case is in August.
Arkansas is one of eight states that does not have online voter registration.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Arkansas Congressman Steve Womack is back in his home state, mainly Northwest Arkansas.
On Monday, he stopped by the Farmers Regional Sale Barn in Hindsville for the day’s cattle sale.
He also spent his morning in Huntsville, meeting with local youth and officials to talk about the growth in Northwest Arkansas.
He said it’s his favorite part of the job.
“It gets me out of Washington. I have an opportunity to come back here and mix and mingle with just regular ordinary people who are making the economy function every single day,” Representative Womack said.
Representative Womack said he has several other visits planned for this week, including one on Thursday in Carroll County and Fort Smith later this week.
Arkansas
Arkansas baseball has 9 affiliated players selected for MLB Draft Combine | Whole Hog Sports
-
West Virginia46 seconds agoWhat channel is West Virginia-UNC baseball today? Time, TV for College World Series game
-
Wyoming4 minutes agoCasper City Council approves projects at Ford Wyoming Center, Fort Caspar campgrounds
-
Crypto9 minutes agoCryptocurrency banking, stablecoins regulation proposed – North Carolina – The Black Chronicle
-
Finance16 minutes agoKey Equipment Finance Adds Foley to Bank Channel Team in Chicago
-
Fitness19 minutes agoAn expert personal trainer says this practical exercise boosts core strength and upper-body stability more than planks
-
Movie Reviews34 minutes ago‘Find Your Friends’ Movie Review: Helena Howard Standout Performance Nearly Saves Shudder Misfire – Deepest Dream
-
World46 minutes agoVideo: Among Mexico’s World Cup Fans: Merlin the Duck
-
Lifestyle1 hour agoDMV artist turns belts into a conversation about discipline
